Stepmom
by Hopeful Writer
Summary: TK is claustrophobic and afraid of fire. Why is that? And can Kari figure it out? PG-13 for child abuse.


Disclaimer: Word to the wise: One who claims to own Digimon will inevitably be sued.

A/N - This is an idea I had way back that I thought would be cool to write. Something happened to TK and now he's claustrophobic and afraid of fire. Can Kari figure him out and make him feel better? Takari (duh!).

Shout outs to Dreamer4, Light Gamer, Dark Gamer, EeyoreP, Knight, EvilTenchi, SaturnsChild, Galassos Gal 124, Phire Phoenix, sweetchick07089, Takari's Baybee, Immia, AlexPG13, and shadow2k. Special dedication to PhoniexChild, Wolfie, TogetherAgain, AAUK, Arylwren, and Digicowboy. The DigiElite before SC, LG, DG, and PP. I first suggested this story idea to them, and they all told me what they thought. It got some good reviews, so I wrote it.

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Stepmom

By: Hopeful Writer

"Hey, TK!" Young TK Takaishi turned around to see his best friend, Kari Kamiya running after him, the warm breeze blowing her chestnut-colored hair off her neck.

"What's up, Kari?" he wondered, stopping so she could catch up.

Kari, as usual, had a mischievous gleam in her crimson eyes. "Let's go to the beach. It's such a pretty day. Please?" she begged, turning on those incredibly cute puppy-dog eyes that TK couldn't resist.

TK sighed. _Why fight it?_ he thought. _Might as well enjoy the day_. "Let me run home and get my bathing suit. I'll meet you at the pier in twenty?"

"Okay, TK. If you don't show up, I'll find you," she threatened. "I know where you live."

TK couldn't resist laughing. "Sure thing, smart one. Maybe I'll skip town, change my name. You know, the whole bit."

"To get out of going to the beach?" Kari looked completely bewildered. "Why? Besides," she added, grinning again with that devilish gleam in her eyes, "I'm sure there are plenty of attractive girls for you to stare at today." As TK blushed, Kari burst into laughter and ran off, leaving the boy feeling very embarrassed.

"Nut case," he muttered as he started home to change.

************

Kari waited impatiently for her blond friend to get to the pier. _What's taking him so long?_ she demanded, tapping her foot in a jagged rhythm.

Suddenly TK appeared, out of breath and red-faced. "Sorry, Kari," he apologized immediately.

The girl smiled at him. "What kept you, dude?" she asked, cocking her head in puzzlement.

"Nothing," he replied quickly. "Just got held up by my stepmother." TK's father had recently remarried and TK didn't much like his stepmother.

"Oh. Weren't you going to wear your green bathing suit?" Kari inquired. She knew TK better than anyone in the world, with the sole exception of Matt and she knew he'd wear his favorite (and hottest) bathing suit on the first beach day of the year.

"It's, uh, in the wash. My stepmother got to it and decided it was too dirty and musty from being stuffed in my drawer all winter," TK responded, looking at the ground as if searching for something interesting. 

Kari looked a little uncertain. "Okay, TK. Whatever you say. Let's go swimming."

"Okay." It seemed to Kari that TK looked relieved about not having to answer anymore questions.

************

"Let's go in the water! Let's go in the water!" Kari yelped, not taking care to the many people glaring at her. She squirmed out of her T-shirt and shorts to reveal a very flattering bathing suit. TK felt himself blushing.

"I'll meet you in there," he promised, slowly kicking off his shoes. He knew how badly she wanted to get in.

Before Kari could reply, Nick Hanner, a boy from their school, approached them. Nick was not known for his class, more for his crude behavior. "Hey, Kari," he greeted. "Looking good." His eyes traveled down Kari's body.

Kari rolled her eyes. "Well, I guess you _aren't_ looking in a perpetual mirror," she retorted sarcastically. It was amazing how fast she could go from happy-go-lucky to dead-serious. TK snickered as Nick turned red.

"Bet you look better without the bathing suit," he added, watching Kari blush and glare at him. TK placed a hand on her shoulder, keeping her from charging at Nick. The black-haired boy's smirk grew as his eyes flickered to TK. "Bet TK knows all about it." TK felt his whole body go crimson and he shook with rage. This time Kari stopped _him_ with a warning look. Nick reached for Kari. "Let's find out," he challenged, grasping the strap.

Kari jerked away from him, nearly tearing the strap off in the process. "Back off, pervert," she muttered through clenched teeth. Nick laughed and tried for her again. She shoved him away and turned to TK. "Let's go." The blond boy shrugged and followed her, casting a long glare at Nick over his shoulder, who surprised them by snickering and walking off. It was odd that he left them alone, but it didn't bother Kari in the least. Suddenly she was back to being happy-go-lucky.

Suddenly she looked at TK, that serious look back on her face. "What's with your chest?" she asked, looking from his chest to his stomach and back up again, until she met his eyes.

Those same eyes widened as he looked down. There were some scars on it, burn scars. He put his hand on them. "Oh, uh, I leaned over too far on the stove the other day and hit it. Stupid me, huh?"

TK could tell Kari didn't believe him, but she shrugged. "If you say so, TK."

TK kicked off. "Catch me if you can, Kari!" he called, changing the subject.

It was a long contest, but Kari eventually caught him and held him under for a second. When he surfaced, his eyes were huge and scared-looking. "What's wrong?" Kari was suddenly on high alert. Something wasn't right with TK today.

He took a deep, shuddering breath. "I can't believe you held me under! I hate being held under."

"You didn't care last year at all," Kari mumbled quietly, somewhat shocked at his outburst.

"Well, I've changed since then. I don't like being without air for any length of time."

Something in Kari snapped right then. She grabbed his shoulders firmly. "What is your problem today? Something's weird with you. What is it?"

To her surprise, and his own, TK began to cry. Kari let go of him, her eyes fearful. "TK, what's wrong?" she whispered, more gently this time.

His whole body quivered. "It was my stepmother. She," he gasped like he could breathe, "she threw me in the shed, poured gasoline on me, and lit it on fire. That's what the scars are from, that's why I'm claustrophobic, and that's why I'm not wearing the green bathing suit that you know I'd normally be wearing. Okay?" His voice was raising slowly and he was shivering so hard his teeth clacked together.

Kari gaped at him for a long moment. "You… you're serious?"

"Yes, Kari. I'm not kidding around. I wish I was. I'm dead serious."

She was silent. "Well, now what?"

TK looked puzzled. "Now what? There wasn't going to be a next step. I was trying to forget about it."

"Are you crazy? You have to tell the police."

"What evidence do I have? They can claim these are from completely different things. She'll deny everything."

Kari was smiling, surprisingly. "TK, remember two weeks ago when we bugged the shed to catch Matt and Sora being naughty? We never un-bugged the shed, did we?" He shook his head, not sure where this was going. "Then it's all on tape!" she cried. She pulled him out of water.

As they started towards TK's house, he added, "If the tape didn't get burned."

"Let's hope."

"I'm good at that," TK joked. Kari grinned. It was good to hear him make a joke.

When they reached the house, TK froze. "I'm not going in there," he told her firmly.

"I'm on it," she replied. She slipped around back and returned moments later with the tape, beaming. "Got it," she hissed. "Now let's get out of here before Stepmom decides to find us." They ran to Kari's house, where they watched the tape. Kari cringed. It was worse than she'd imagined. 

TK could barely stand to watch. The tears poured down his cheeks as he rapidly fought to keep from passing out. When it ended, Kari whispered, "I guess we have evidence now, huh?"

TK stared at her for a moment before nodding quietly, not wiping the tears from his eyes. Kari, after a quick moment of silent debate, kissed his lips softly but firmly. When she pulled back, she stood up and plucked the tape from the VCR, not giving TK time to respond to that. "Let's go to the police station."

While they were walking, TK built up his nerve. "What was that for?" he demanded.

"What was what for?"

"Don't play dumb, Kari. The kiss. What was it for?"

Kari didn't turn to look at him; she kept walking briskly. "You looked like you needed one."

"Hey, stop." Kari halted and turned to look at him, a faint crimson blush in her cheeks. TK pressed his lips against her and held them there. Neither one moved for a while. They just stood there in the street, kissing. TK's hands finally moved to Kari's waist, and her hands moved to play with his hair. When they pulled away, Kari was the first to speak.

"What was that for?"

TK smiled at her. "You look like you needed it." Kari flushed. "Hey, will you be my girlfriend, Kari? Please?"

Kari studied him with her mouth open and her eyes skeptical. "Yeah. I will," she answered, as if not believing this was happening.

He smiled. "Let's go tell the cops now." He took her hand and felt a lot braver.

The police watched the tape and jailed Stepmom so fast it made TK's head spin. All he remembered from the whole thing was Kari holding his hand tightly, nervously, and his dad saying, "I'm sorry, TK. I would never have married her if I knew this was going to happen."

When it was over, TK turned to his best friend, now girlfriend, and asked shyly, "Want to go back to the beach now?"

She smiled at him. "Sure."

THE END

A/N - Interesting concept, but it worked a lot better in my mind. I got it from watching Pay It Forward. What happened to TK happened to the guy in the movie (not in the book, though). Read the book if you ever get a chance. It's a good one. It's by *checks bookcase* Catherine Ryan Hyde. Please review. Flames allowed, criticism appreciated, compliments worshipped. Click the button and leave me a message. Bye! §--HW--§


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